Effect of Strategies to Improve General Practitioner-nurse Collaboration and Communication

Effects of Strategies to Improve General Practitioner-nurse Collaboration and Communication in Regard to Hospital Admissions of Nursing Home Residents.

Previously,six measures were developed for a better collaboration of general practitioners and nurses in nursing homes in a qualitative multistep bottom-up process. These measures, summarised as the interprof ACT intervention, shall improve the flow of information and the communication between the involved parties and lead to more transparency and effectiveness regarding treatment decisions of nursing home residents.The major aim of this trial is to examine the clinical effectiveness of interprof ACT. The main hypothesis is that implementation of interprof ACT reduces the cumulative incidence of hospitalisations of nursing home residents within 12 months from 50% to 35% (15% absolute reduction).

Inclusion Criteria Residents:

• at least one GP visit in recent three months or
• two GP visits in recent 6 months or
• admission to the nursing home during the precedent 6 months independently of documented GP contacts
• at least 18 years of age
• written informed consent by the resident or her/his legal guardian

Inclusion Criteria Nursing Homes:

• minimum size of 40 residents
• written consent provided by the nursing home Manager Prior to randomisation

Exclusion Criteria Residents:

- admission for short term care only

Exclusion Criteria Nursing Homes:

- participation in other projects on interprofessional collaboration.